I had been nine years in the theatre and hadn't had massive success. My only thing was I wanted to be an actor and I didn't care when, where, or how much for.

If I work with a bad actor, my reaction is to immediately become worse than they are.

Not only is acting more than a part-time job, it's more than a full-time job. It's a full-time obsession.

If you think you're going to be up for an Oscar, you schedule your moviemaking.

And to Tom Cruise, for if you had won this, your asking price would have gone down so fast. Do you have any idea what supporting actors get paid? We get only one trailer, a small one, in the back.

Things are not quite what they seem always. Don't start me on class, otherwise you'll get a four-hour lecture.

You must always steal, but only from the best people. Steal any trick that looks worthwhile. If you see Vivien Leigh or Robert DeNiro or Meryl Streep do something stunningly effective, and you can analyze how he or she did it, then pinch it. Because you can be sure that they stole it in the first place.